Chapter 2

Isabella POV:

Dead silence stretched across the cathedral as sunlight filtered through the stained glass, casting bizarre shadows over Darrin's pale face while he held the boy.

I raised my right hand and swung hard. With a sharp crack, my palm landed squarely across Darrin's cheek.

That slap took every ounce of strength I had. The impact sent a violent spasm through the old scars on my wrist, and I bit my lower lip hard to keep from gasping in pain.

"Look me in the eye, Darrin," I barked, my voice echoing through the hall. "Whose pup is this?"

Darrin's head was knocked to the side. He didn't get angry; he just kept his eyes lowered, his Adam's apple bobbing heavily in his throat.

"Bella, I... I can explain. It's not what you think." He reached out his free hand to touch my shoulder, and simultaneously tried to push his voice into my head through our pack Mind-Link: Bella, please listen to me—

I stepped back coldly to dodge his fingers and slammed my mental barrier shut, bouncing his mental projection back like he was knocking on an iron door.

"Explain? Halfway through our wedding vows?" I let out a cold laugh, pointing a gloved finger at Leo, who was glaring daggers at me from his chest.

Before Darrin could speak, Darcie sprinted over from the side door, her high heels clattering frantically against the stone floor.

She grabbed Darrin's arm, her face twisted in panic. "Darrin! Come with me right now! Brandon slit her wrist at the Medical Center!"

I watched Darrin's pupils shrink instantly. The golden glow of his Alpha wolf surfaced in his eyes, an involuntary physical reaction to extreme terror.

"She used a silver blade!" Darcie sobbed out, and those four words blew the entire room apart.

Werewolves have zero defense against silver; its toxic burn destroys our healing factor and is the only thing that can kill our Inner Wolf. Darrin's breathing turned ragged and heavy on the spot.

He whipped his head back to me. The guilt in his eyes was gone, replaced by burning desperation and resolve.

"Bella, I'm sorry, I have to save her. She became crippled four years ago to save my life—I can't watch her die!" Darrin rattled off the words at breakneck speed.

"If you walk out that door today, our engagement contract is dead!" I raised my voice, using the last of my dignity to draw a line.

In the front pews, several Pack Elders stood up, trying to stop this farce with stern glares, yet none of them could suppress a frantic Alpha in his prime.

Darrin hesitated for less than a second. He gave me one deep look, as if assuming I would always forgive him like I had for the past four years.

Then he turned his back on me without another word, clutching Leo tightly as he sprinted toward the side door in long strides.

Darcie hurried right behind him, not once looking back at me—the bride abandoned at the altar.

The heavy wooden door slammed shut behind them with a dull thud, locking me inside a ridiculous joke.

I stood alone at the end of the empty red carpet. The million-dollar custom wedding gown suddenly felt like a heavy prison uniform suffocating my chest.

Waves of whispers rose from the pews below. Pitying, mocking, and gloating stares washed over me from every corner of the hall.

"How pathetic," a female voice murmured nearby. "The heiress of the Norris family just got upstaged at her own wedding by a low-tier disabled wolf."

I sucked in a cold breath and forced my spine straight. I would rather die than break down in front of these vultures.

I reached up, ripped the intricate lace veil from my hair, and tossed it onto the floor like trash.

Lifting my heavy skirt, I walked down the steps in my heels and locked my eyes on Liam Sullivan, who was standing by the groomsmen's side.

Liam was Darrin's Beta and right-hand vice president in the pack corporation. Right now, he looked completely lost and embarrassed.

"Get a car ready," I said, stopping right in front of him, my voice as cold as ice. "Take me to the Medical Center."

"Luna, the Alpha ordered me to stay—" Liam tried to use Darrin's authority to hold me back.

I stepped right into his personal space, my gaze sweeping over his face. "Don't use him to pressure me. Either you go pull the car around, or I call your Gamma security director myself and have you replaced."

Liam flinched under my sudden cold aura. He swallowed hard and lowered his head in submission.

"Yes, ma'am. I'll arrange it right now." He turned and jogged quickly toward the side exit.

Ignoring the murmurs and half-hearted attempts from the guests to stop me, I walked out of the cathedral with steady steps.

The sunlight outside was blinding, yet my hands and feet were freezing cold inside my dress.

I was going to see for myself what kind of tricks a paralyzed woman used to turn the man I loved into the father of another woman's child.